Reviewed: The Forking Cork, Taman OUG

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The Forking Cork is a wine bar located in the bustling suburb of Taman Oug, a place with interesting decor and a wide selection of wines. Staff are very friendly and helpful, you will be pleased to spend your Friday night here.

“Today I had a pair of pork balls.” sounds hilariously unappetizing.

May I clarify that they are, in fact, mozarella-stuffed meatballs made from minced pork meat, which tastes excellent by the way. But the same can’t be said for the pasta that came with it.

I will say that today was an exceptionally good day. I’m finally on my break, which is sweet, blissful freedom. Had the chance to have a beer with my course mates, and a great time at dinner sharing laughs and stories. However, none of that can save the slight shock both me and my fellow diner received when we had our first look at the pasta.

Aside from the ugly browns and reds, the dish had no color whatsoever. When I attempted to take a photo, the dim lighting made it worse by painting the entire picture monochrome. I couldn’t tell where the meatball ended and the spaghetti began. Presentation wise, I will quote my lecturer who once looked at my salad (which was a mix o greens, browns and yellows), “It does not look appetizing. I would not eat it.”

Flavor and texture wise, the meatballs were very good in the sense that they were moist and sticky in the right way, while being cooked all the way through. I was impressed that they managed to cook it perfect: nice crust on the outside, thoroughly cooked in the inside (crucial for pork), juicy on the inside, and a delicious cheese stuffing.

The spaghetti and sauce seemed to have much less to offer. The spaghetti was far beyond al dente, and combined with the watery and slightly-too-sweet sauce, turning into a soft and slithery creature that keeps escaping your spoon. You can’t really taste any tomato in the sauce, really, the sugar is just overpowering. There were mushrooms, but again the flavor was masked by the sugar and bland sauce. I could barely even taste the garlic. It is sad to say that the spaghetti sauce resembled store-bought ketchup more than anything. My fellow diner commented that it tasted like canned spaghetti sauce.

I have to compliment them on their service, because staff greeted and smiled at us every step of the way, opening doors and so on and so forth. I have to admit that we did not have the wine, as my sole purpose had been to review pasta tonight. Perhaps The Forking Cork made for a great drinking spot, I wouldn’t know yet. If the meatballs could be served without the pasta and sauce, perhaps I would order it again.

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Welcome to Pasta Pages!

Every week, I make a visit to a different restaurant to try their pasta. Sometimes between the week, I will make posts about food or Italian cooking.
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